She sighed, looking from me to Hollis. “We were kind of dating for a while, or at least I thought we were then he dropped off the face of the planet. He stopped visiting and he won’t return my calls or texts or anything.”
When I’d first discovered his association with Rose, Fletcher had reassured me that it was just for pretend. That he was only talking to her because she was my Gemini and he was keeping an eye on her to protect me, so he’d know if and when she was planning to strike. From what Rose was saying, that was true except for the fact that she wasn’t my Gemini. Why was Fletcher pretending to like her then?
Rose folded her arms across her chest. “How do you know him?”
“He—he’s my best friend.”
She raised her eyebrow. “Is that why you’re here? Because of Fletcher?”
I nodded. “He told me you were my Gemini but you’re obviously not.” Maybe she was but I just wasn’t feeling it for some reason.
Rose narrowed her sea-blue eyes at me. “You look familiar. You look like . . . her.”
I swallowed hard. “Her who?”
Rose backed away from us. “It doesn’t matter. It’s silly. We should act like this whole thing never happened. I have to get going now.”
“Wait,” I said. There were so many things I needed to ask and say to her. I wanted to tell her who I really was. I needed to ask her about my parents—my real parents. What happened to them? What were they like? I was dying to know. Did she even know they weren’t her birth parents?
She turned to me, waiting expectantly but I couldn’t say all the things that had been running through my mind. “Um, sorry about all this,” I muttered.
“It’s okay. This isn’t an easy life we lead. Tell Fletcher I said hi,” she added bitterly. She disappeared through the trees.
Hollis breathed deeply behind me. “Well, that was a gigantic waste of time.”
“It doesn’t matter. I wouldn’t have been able to do it anyway.”
I wasn’t so sure it had been a complete waste. For some reason I had needed to see Rose up close and for real. “I’m sorry, it’s just that Fletcher—”
“I’ve told you something was wrong with that kid. He’s a Giver. He was trying to throw you off. He wanted you to think that girl was your Gemini so you wouldn’t look for your real one. So they would find you first. He set you up. Only an idiot would trust a Giver.”
Hollis stalked through the trees shoving branches out of his way. I followed him, stung by his words. Was he right? Was I an idiot? Had Fletcher been playing me all along? If Rose wasn’t my Gemini, who was?
Chapter Twelve
Sunday had been wonderful. I stood on my parent’s scale and learned that I’d gained five pounds since I’d weighed myself seven days before. Imani and I spent the day movie-hopping. Most of the movies I hadn’t wanted to see, but it was still worth it to spend time with Imani. If she was hanging out with me, she wouldn’t be hanging out with Lacey and her bees. As an additional bonus, I’d actually gotten full from the salty popcorn.
Monday afternoon I looked all over school for Imani so that we could walk home together. Fletcher was out sick again and lucky for him, he hadn’t taken my phone calls all weekend. No one answered the door when I’d gone to his house. I was going to ream him a new one over the Rose situation. I had almost killed a girl on account of him.
At dismissal when Imani wasn’t by the trophy case where we normally met, I was worried that Lacey had offered her a ride home. I sent her a text:
Me: Whr r u?
Imani: had 2 turn in some paper wrk 4 my shots. Will b a few. Don’t wait up.
Me. I will. Don’t mind
Imani: K. Thx!
I took a seat in the office’s waiting area so I wouldn’t miss her. As usual, the office reeked of old coffee and the tangerine-scented air freshener the janitors used all over the school. The place was eerily quiet and I didn’t understand why. Usually the office staff stayed an hour after dismissal. One of the clerks walked briskly toward the door with her purse slung over her shoulder.
“Excuse me, where’s everyone?” I asked.
She paused to pull her keys out. “Principal Sharpe let us go early.”
“Why?”
The woman shrugged. “Just because. He said we’ve been working hard. We weren’t about to question it.” The clerk rushed through the doors like she wanted to get out before Principal Sharpe changed his mind.
If everyone had gone, who was Imani turning in her paperwork to?
I texted her again:
Me: Whr r u
Imani: outside sharpes office shhhh
She had included the magnifying glass emoji. Why was she snooping outside of Sharpe’s office?
Sighing, I grabbed my backpack and tiptoed to the back of the building where the principal and vice principal’s offices were located. Outside of Principal Sharp’s office, Imani leaned against the wall by the door way. She put her finger to her lips when she saw me.
I crept toward her and stopped at the other side of the door, listening.
“She’s still unaccounted for,” Principal Sharpe was saying.
“I don’t see how that’s my problem or why you’re concerned about it.” That deep, brusque voice belonged to Mr. Mason. What was he doing in the school talking to Principal Sharpe?
“You know very well it’s all of our concern. This Gemini Curse is back in effect because they feel threatened. Now one of their own is missing—an important one at that. Of course they’re going to blame us and more retaliation will follow.”
I looked at Imani. She mouthed the word Melcher. Why were they talking about Mrs. Melcher? What did Principal Sharpe mean by one of their own? Imani shouldn’t have been hearing any of it. How was I going to explain it to her? I couldn’t.
Principal Sharpe was a Taker, like me. A Satyr to be exact. If he knew something about Ms. Melcher that I didn’t . . . I was with Imani—I had to know.
Sharpe cleared his throat. “If you have her, you best say so and then we can rectify this.”
Why would Mr. Mason have Ms. Melcher? What would he be doing with her?
“I haven’t a clue where she is or why you insist I do. There was something else I wanted to discuss with you, but you don’t seem in the mood to listen.”
My heart leapt. Their conversation was about to be over. Mr. Mason was going to storm out of the office and catch the two of us eavesdropping. I caught Imani’s eye and pointed down the hallway. She nodded and pointed in the opposite direction. She couldn’t possibly cross the doorway but there was another exit she could use. The two of us parted ways and met up again on the front steps of the school.
On the walk home Imani’s mouth ran a mile a minute. I did my best to nod, shake my head, and pretend that I had no idea what was going on.
“Can you believe it?” she asked. “They know something about Ms. Melcher’s disappearance that they’re trying to keep secret. Who was that man Principal Sharpe was talking to? He’s kind of creepy. Whatever they’re hiding, I bet they haven’t even told the police. I have to know what it is.”
I wanted to know too, but whatever it was, Imani couldn’t find out and she definitely couldn’t mention it to her father. I quickly changed the topic to the upcoming school carnival which was a huge deal at Everson High.
“What are you wearing to the carnival?” I asked.
She started describing the new jeans she had bought at the mall, and Ms. Melcher was forgotten for the time being. Thank God for short attention spans.
Chapter Thirteen
Most of my life was spent dreading the passage of time—wondering whether or not I would become a full-blown beast by my eighteenth birthday. Having something to look forward to was a good feeling. I had a sense that this year’s Spring Carnival was going to be the best yet.
Excitement for the Spring Carnival was almost at prom level. Most kids got new outfits and went with dates. I loved that it was a carnival just for us—no parents, no littl
e kids. It was like our own teenage playground. Everyone let their hair down and had a good time that night. The past couple of years, I had gone with Fletcher, but only as friends. This year Fletcher, Imani and I would be going together if he was feeling up to it. I hoped he would be. The carnival wouldn’t have been the same without him. Who would make fun of the way I screamed on the roller coaster? Who would let me squeeze their hand as tight as I needed to in the haunted house without complaining? The weather had cleared up and I hoped it wouldn’t rain that night.
A few days before the carnival, the doorbell rang while I worked on my algebra homework at the kitchen table. I had to take advantage of the quiet time before my sisters came home. “I’ll get it,” I called upstairs to Mom.
Looking through the peephole, I thought I saw Ranson Duvall standing on my porch. My eyes must have been playing tricks on me, so I looked again. Sure enough, he was standing there in all his douchebaggy confidence. Not even the flesh-colored nose splint he’d worn since the locker incident had knocked him down a few pegs. He’d lied and told everyone he had gotten hit in the nose with a football.
I flung the door open. “What the hell are you doing here? You lost or something?”
Ranson looked a little taken aback at first but then he jutted his square jaw at me. “Dust, lose the attitude, okay?”
I started to slam the door in his face but he caught it with his forearm.
“What do you want?” I shouted.
“You and I are going to the carnival on Saturday.”
I stared him down, trying to decipher what he’d said. He must have been speaking in some special code where words didn’t mean what they normally meant. “Are you insane? In what universe do you think I would ever go anywhere with you? I probably hate you more than I hate anyone.” That included Lacey Chapman, so it was saying a lot.
Ranson scrunched his face in confusion as if he couldn’t understand the concept of someone hating him. “Look, don’t flatter yourself. Do you think I want to go to the carnival with you? There’s an endless list of hotties who would claw each other’s eyes out for a chance to go with me.”
I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath. Maybe his head had been knocked around too much on the football field. “Ranson, if you don’t want to go to the carnival with me, why are you here at my house asking me to go with you?”
He sighed in exasperation as if it were the stupidest question he’d ever heard. The whole thing was just bizarre. “It’s for Wiley.”
My stomach felt queasy at the mention of his name. “What? What does any of this have to do with Wiley?”
Ranson rested his hands on the doorframe. “He’s not going to the carnival. He says it’s lame. He doesn’t want you to go with another guy, particularly that freak Fletcher, so he asked me to ask you because he knows there is no way I would ever, ever, ever, really be interested in you, so he doesn’t care if we go together. What time do you want me to pick you up? Seven? Let’s do seven.”
I clenched my teeth, fighting back all the swear words I wanted to hurl at him. “I’d rather die the longest most painful death than go anywhere with you. Get out of here!” I slammed the door so fast Ranson had to jump out of the way to keep his fractured nose from getting hit again. Who did Wiley think he was, having Ranson watch over me like I was his property?
Still, Ranson wouldn’t go away. I took the stairs two at a time as he rang the doorbell incessantly. Mom passed me on the landing. “Who is that?”
“Jehovah’s Witnesses. Mom, don’t open the door, they’ll never go away.”
She jogged down the steps and did exactly what I told her not to do. “Hello. Can I help you?”
I leaned over the banister, listening.
Ranson cleared his throat. “Good afternoon, Mrs. Moss. We’ve never been formally introduced, but my name is Ranson Duvall. I’d like to speak with Arden just for a second if that’s okay.” Anyone who didn’t know him, might have thought he was charming.
I could tell from Mom’s body language that she was buying it. “What happened to your nose?”
“Football injury, ma’am. Stupid me, playing without a helmet.”
Liar. I wanted so badly to tell him I that I was the one responsible for that locker door whacking him in the face, but that would only cause more problems.
Mom nodded, impressed. “You play football?”
Ranson grinned, like he knew Mom was eating his act right up. “Yes, mam. I’m the team’s quarterback.”
“Good for you.” Mom turned and looked at me with an eyebrow raised.
“I don’t want to talk to him. Tell him to go away.” I said loud enough for him to hear.
Mom sighed and placed her hand on her hip. “Arden ...”
Nothing she could say would make me talk to that ass. “Tell him to get out of here!”
She paused, giving me the eye and turned back to Ranson. “I’m sorry, Ranson. Arden isn’t up for talking right now. Maybe another time.”
He didn’t say anything else and Mom shut the door. What was wrong with that guy? He actually expected me to drop everything and accept his invitation after all the horrible things he’s said to me and done to Fletcher. Talk about entitled.
Mom stood at the bottom of the stairs frowning. “What was that about?”
“He asked me to the carnival.”
Mom face brightened. “Oh, Arden, he’s cute. And he’s an athlete. Why are you being so mean to him?”
Why was I being so mean to him? Seriously? She didn’t even know the half of it. “Mom, Ranson is one of the most disgusting people I’ve ever met. I’d rather go to the carnival with a cockroach!”
I slammed my bedroom door before Mom forced me to go out with Ranson. She would totally do that. Mom could never get enough of telling me about her first love who was also a star quarterback. I’d do almost anything to make Mom happy, but going out with Ranson was simply out of the question.
I spent all of Saturday afternoon getting my carnival outfit together. I kept sending Imani pictures of what I had planned to wear, and she kept texting me back the thumbs down emoji.
“Arden, why can’t you wear a pair of jeans like a normal person? Who wears a floor-length dress to a carnival?” she asked over the phone.
“I hate jeans. You know that. I’ll be uncomfortable the whole night and I want to have a good time.” The thought of wearing jeans was about as appealing as wearing a straight-jacket.
She sighed. “Fine. Wear what you want. I call you when I’m on the way.”
At 6:38, I stood in my full-length mirror, giving myself a last minute once-over.
I’d decided to put all my hair up in one ponytail which I rarely did. It wasn’t as perfect as Mary-Kate’s, curls kept slipping out at the sides, but I still thought it was cute. I’d chosen one of my more casual dresses—a dress named Brandy. She wasn’t puffy and there was no ribbon that tied around the waist.
Brandy was a simple fitted dress made out of dark gray jersey material; scoop-necked and sleeveless, which for me was showing a lot of skin. After slipping into my ankle boots, I checked myself out in the mirror. Not bad. I actually looked like a real teenager. A normal teenager.
Imani drove us to the Everson fair grounds in her father’s older model Mercedes. After throwing the car into park, she twisted her body to face me in the passenger seat and Fletcher, who sat in the back seat nestled in his thick coat.
“Here’s the plan,” she said. “We ride first. We’ll start with the mild ones and then work our way up to the scary ones. I hear the roller coaster is the scariest ride here. Everybody rides. No punking out. Then we eat and walk around and play games.”
Sounded good to me. Fletcher and I both nodded before climbing out of the car.
The whole school was at the carnival so we’d had to park far away. I looped my arm around Fletcher’s and leaned into his shoulder as we walked. I hadn’t seen him in a week and I missed my friend. I had been itching to talk to him about what had happened
with Rose, but I couldn’t with Imani around. I was angry with him, but I decided to put my feelings aside until after the carnival. Fletcher had lied to me for a reason. If he was playing me like Hollis thought, that wasn’t something I wanted to know, at least not that night. Carnival nights were always perfect and who knew how many good nights we had left? By the time senior year rolled around, I could be a permanent resident of the sixth tunnel.
After we paid our admission, we got our hands stamped and entered the gates of the carnival. Lately, every odor I smelled had been intensified. The sweet smell of cotton candy nauseated me. When we passed the kielbasa sausage stand, my mouth watered. Ride first. Eat later. The perfect night did not consist of me puking all over the place. Though I wanted the meat, I was able to suppress the urge, which was new for me. Once the smell was gone, so was my desire for the meat. That was a good thing.
We stood in line for the Hully Gully—a huge merry-go-round with carts. A mechanical lady stood in the middle and the carts hung off her dress as she danced. Three people could easily fit in one cart so it was the perfect ride to start with.
Fletcher eyed Imani, who had begun a conversation with Henry Piers from our biology class, as we leaned against the railing waiting for our turn to ride. Fletcher nudged me in my side. “I like her. . . a lot, but we shouldn’t be hanging out with her so much.”
Part of me knew he really wanted to say that I shouldn’t be hanging out with her so much. Outside friends had never been an issue for either of us before since no one had really wanted to associate with us.
“I’m not going to hurt her, Fletcher.” Even though I really had no way of knowing that. “I’m not as hungry as I used to be. I think I’m getting better.”
“It’s not just that. She’s smart and nosey. She’ll realize something is wrong with us. I mean, have you ever been this close to anyone besides me and Bailey? Have you ever been so close to anyone who wasn’t a creature?”
He was right, I hadn’t been. Imani was smart, but there was no way her mind would conclude that we were creatures and I had no intentions of giving up my friend. “It’ll be fine.” At least I hoped it would be.
Dust and Roses: Book Two of the Dust Trilogy Page 9
